The San Francisco Human Services Agency (HSA) released its biennial homeless count on Friday and responses to a newly included question have shed light on one of the city's most vulnerable populations.

For the first time in the survey's history, the HSA asked respondents to identify their sexual orientation. Of the 1,000 participants, nearly one-third identified as LGBTQ.

While earlier studies have estimated a high LGBTQ homeless population in the city, the HSA count results have surprised even experts in the field.

"It's great to finally have these numbers," said Coalition on Homelessness Executive Director Jennifer Friedenbach to the San Francisco Chronicle. "What we get from this is that homelessness is a queer issue."

According to Mary Howe, executive director of the Haight Ashbury Youth Alliance, the issue is particularly pressing amongst homeless youth, who make up about 14 percent of the total homeless population.

"We've won battles for gay marriage and gays in the military," said Carl Siciliano in an interview with The Huffington Post. Siciliano is the founder and executive director of the New York-based Ali Forney Center, the nation's largest organization for LGBT youth. "This is the next frontier, the next battle: helping these youths."